Florida's Turnpike South - Wildwood to Clermont

Construction completed in January 2020 expanded the wye interchange where Florida's Turnpike splits from Interstate 75 south. Added was a new distributor roadway extending south from adjacent SR 44 at Wildwood.

01/20/20

Florida's Turnpike begins from I-75 at Left Exit 328. A flyover also joins the toll road from SR 44.

01/20/20

10/05/24

The first confirming marker for Florida's Turnpike southbound.

01/02/21

10/05/24

The state legislature designated Florida's Turnpike the Ronald Reagan Turnpike in 1988. Signs honoring the 40th President of the U.S. appear sporadically on the toll road mainline.

01/02/21

Southbound distance sign posted 55 miles from Orlando and 275 miles from Miami. Originally the Turnpike was called the Sunshine State Parkway, with plans extending the road northeast from Wildwood to Jacksonville.

01/02/21

Two miles northwest of the diamond interchange (Exit 304) with U.S. 301 to the cities of Coleman and Wildwood.

01/02/21

Florida's Turnpike switched to cashless tolling in 2021. This sign references Sunpass and Toll By Plate.

01/02/21

The link from I-75 to U.S. 301 on Florida's Turnpike is toll free. The toll collection system begins southward beyond Exit 304.

01/02/21

The Villages master planned community spreads northward from Wildwood between U.S. 301 and U.S. 441 and south of the Turnpike along Sumter County Road 468 (Warm Springs Avenue).

01/02/21

U.S. 301 follows Main Street north to SR 44 (Gulf Atlantic Highway) ahead of Downtown Wildwood. Southward, U.S. 301 meets CR 468 near the Village of Fenney development en route to Coleman, Sumterville and Bushnell.

01/02/21

Exit 304 departs Florida's Turnpike south for U.S. 301 (Main Street) in Wildwood.

01/02/21

The Villages consists of several developments forming one overall community that stretches overall across portions of Lake, Marion and Sumter Counties.

01/02/21

SR 44 east from U.S. 301 leads to the Lake County seat of Leesburg.

01/02/21

U.S. 301 parallels Interstate 75 southward to Dade City and Tampa and north from Wildwood to Ocala.

01/02/21

The original Wildwood main line toll plaza was located just beyond a brief roadway separation east of U.S. 301. Toll collection here ceased on July 7, 1995, with subsequent demolition of the booths completed as part of a $42 million modernization project to switch the northern Turnpike from ticket-based to coin-based toll collection.¹

10/05/24

Continuing south, Florida's Turnpike next meets the Okahumpka Service Plaza followed by Exit 296 to County Road 470 in southwest Leesburg.

10/05/24

"Welcome to Main Street Fla" sign posted on the Turnpike southbound. The Main Street segment of the toll road is considered to be the mainline between I-75 in Sumter County and Golden Glades in Miami-Dade County.

10/05/24

Turnpike Service Plazas are positioned every 45 minutes according to this sign along southbound between Exits 304 and 296. The facilities provide the main motorists services for 90 miles on the rural stretch between St. Cloud and Ft. Pierce.

10/05/24

The Water Lily Bridge multiuse trail bridge spans between areas of The Villages master-planned community.

10/05/24

Two miles ahead of the Okahumpka Service Plaza on the Turnpike south. The area is typical of those on the toll road, lying between the north and southbound roadways.

10/05/24

CR 468 (Warm Springs Avenue) passes over Florida's Turnpike one mile north of the Okahumpka Service Plaza in a sprawling area of the Villages community. Provisions were made during 2016-17 road work for a possible interchange with the Turnpike here.

10/05/24

Southbound at the left exit for the Okahumpka Service Plaza on Florida's Turnpike. The facility provides fuel, food and tourist information.

10/05/24

Additionally, automatic windshield wash stations are available at the Okahumpka Service Plaza for both cars and trucks. Dead insects, love bugs in particular, are a reoccurring problem for motorists traveling through Central and North Florida.

10/05/24

Reassurance shield posted beyond the service plaza. Crossing in the distance is Bexley Trail. The four-lane suburban boulevard built as part of The Villages replaced what was originally an agricultural overpass.

10/05/24

The Turnpike advances another two miles southeast to the parclo A2 interchange (Exit 296) with County Road 470.

10/05/24

Lake County Road 470 travels east from Exit 296 to CR 33/48 at the unincorporated community of Okahumpka.

10/05/24

County Road 470 west to Sumterville became discontinuous when expansion of The Villages displaced the linear route. Central Parkway, a divided suburban boulevard with seven roundabouts, was built in place of most of CR 470.

10/05/24

Lake County is the second of 11 counties along Florida's Turnpike southbound.

10/05/24

Exit 296 opened to traffic in 2005, improving access from Florida's Turnpike to northern Lake County including Leesburg and Howey-In-The-Hills. CR 48 continues east from CR 470 to SR 19 through Howey-In-The-Hills.

10/05/24

Decorative street lighting lines the ramps between Florida's Turnpike and CR 470 at Exit 296. The remaining sections of CR 470 west lead to U.S. 301 at Sumterville.

10/05/24

Florida's Turnpike passes east of Hampton Prairie and Clearwater Lake on the 6.8 miles to the succeeding exit.

10/05/24

U.S. 27 meets Florida's Turnpike directly at a half diamond interchange (Exit 289) just beyond Dilly Lake/Marsh in seven miles.

10/05/24

The ramps at Exit 289 were built in conjunction with the Leesburg main line Toll Plaza that replaced the previous Wildwood facility 14 miles to the northwest. Construction for the new exit got underway in January 1994.^2,3

10/05/24

Forthcoming Exit 289 connects Florida's Turnpike with SR 19 north to U.S. 441 at Tavares and the Lake Eustis Seaplane Base.

10/05/24

U.S. 27 provides a route to Walt Disney World from U.S. 192 at Four Corners to the west, but SR 429 (Western Beltway) is a more direct and higher speed route to the theme park from Florida's Turnpike south.

10/05/24

SR 19 meets U.S. 27 south of the Turnpike at Exit 285, four miles southeast. Prior to July 1995, all traffic for both routes used the ramps at Exit 285.⁴ Clermont, a suburban bedroom community for Orlando, lies southeast along U.S. 27 at SR 50.

10/05/24

SR 19 leads north from U.S. 27 nines mile through Howey-In-The-Hills en route to the Lake County seat of Taveras at U.S. 441 and CR Old 441. Annexations place most areas southeast of Exit 289 within the city of Groveland. SR 19 leads south to SR 33/50 in Downtown Groveland.

10/05/24

U.S. 27 parallels the Turnpike before turning south through Minneola to reach the Clermont city line in 11 miles.

10/05/24

Prior to 2024, Exit 289 defaulted onto U.S. 27 (Claude Pepper Memorial Highway) southbound. A U-turn lane located across from the South Lake Hospital ER at Blue Cedar connected with U.S. 27 north to Okahumpka. The medical facility opened just south of the Turnpike in Summer 2018.

10/05/24

Part of the $233 million widening project along Florida's Turnpike south from O'Brien Road to Exit 278 / Hancock Road, construction through 2028 restores the two ramps at the trumpet interchange at Exit 285 that were removed in 1995.

10/05/24

The mainline all electronic tolling (AET) gantry at mile marker 287.5 replaced the Leesburg toll plaza. Located at mile marker 288, the original toll plaza was demolished in 2021.

10/05/24

Ronald Reagan Turnpike sign southbound at milepost 287.

05/19/22

The access road from Exit 285 ties into the parclo B2 interchange joining U.S. 27 and SR 19 in north Groveland.

10/05/24

Exit 285 will again depart from the Turnpike south of the O'Brien Road over crossing. the area nearby is home to a large industrial park and several newer subdivisions.

07/17/21

Florida's Turnpike crosses over SR 19 and plies across wetland areas associated with the Little Everglades beyond this confirming marker.

05/19/22

Florida's Turnpike joins Sumter and Lake Counties with greater Orlando. A 16 mile stretch leads the Turnpike southeast into Orange County, where SR 50 crosses the toll road east from Clermont.

10/05/24

A long straight away along the Turnpike parallels U.S. 27 southeast between Montgomery and Schoolhouse Lakes. The two routes diverge beyond CR 561 near Shepherd Lake. Scrub Jay Lane spans the Turnpike south of mile marker 282.

10/05/24

Construction completed on June 10, 2017 added a parclo interchange with Hancock Road in the city of Minneola. Located at milepost 279, the $29 million exchange will serve over 10,000 homes approved for the immediate area.⁶

10/05/24

Rolling hills make up the landscape of southern Lake County. Rising to a height of 312 feet, Sugarloaf Mountain, the tallest point on Peninsular Florida, lies a short distance north of Hancock Road. Montverde lies to the east along Lake Apopka.

10/05/24

Hancock Road constitutes a suburban arterial winding south from the Turnpike in Minneola to SR 50 in east Clermont. The road extends north with two lanes to CR 561A within the vicinity of Sugarloaf Mountain (el. 312 feet).

10/05/24

Opening of the Minneola interchange preceded the project to widen Florida's Turnpike from Hancock Road south to SR 50 / Exit 272. The Hills of Minneola 4,000-home and the Bella Collina 800-home planned developments by Exit 279 added to the commuter traffic along the ensuing stretch.⁷

10/05/24

Subdivisions abut both sides of Florida's Turnpike on the ensuing stretch southeast by Blacks Still Lake.

07/17/21

$162.3 million in construction expanding Florida's Turnpike from four to eight lanes between Minneola and Clermont runs through 2026.

05/19/22

Florida's Turnpike curves eastward to Exit 272 for SR 50 (W Colonial Drive). SR 50 joins Oakland and Winter Garden with the annexed areas of Clermont to the west.

05/19/22

Costing $10.7 million, the diamond interchange at Exit 272 was constructed from May 1991 until May 1, 1993, when the east side ramps opened to traffic.⁸ The west side ramps at SR 50 (W Colonial Drive) were not opened until the Leesburg toll plaza commenced operations in 1995.²

05/19/22

Florida's Turnpike southbound enters Orange County between the Verde Park and Lake Apopka Sound subdivisions. Seven interchanges line the turnpike within the county.

05/19/22

Exit 272 serves the town of Oakland and city of Winter Garden on the south side of Lake Apopka and suburban areas of both communities around Johns Lake south of the Turnpike. SR 50 provides one of two routes between Oakland and Winter Garden with Oakland Avenue (CR 438) being the other.

05/19/22

Oakland Avenue and the parallel West Orange Trail pass over the toll road within one half mile of Exit 272. The trail follows the path of a former railroad line throughout western Orange County.

05/19/22

07/17/21

SR 50 (W Colonial Drive) heads west past Killarney into Lake County en route to Clermont and U.S. 27. East from Exit 272, SR 50 intersects Tubb Street south of Downtown Oakland in a half mile. The state road connects with the Turnpike again in five miles.

05/19/22